He died from injuries sustained in confrontations between soldiers and armed traffickers in the neighborhoods of Penha, Mare and Complexo do Alemao.

Residents in a Rio de Janeiro slum where thousands of troops recently conducted operations have protested against rough-handed tactics as the military announced the third death of a soldier killed in clashes.

Members of the Rio’s Public Defender’s Office human rights groups walked through the streets of Penha Complex and listened to allegations of human rights violations by soldiers who conducted major operations earlier this week.

Those allegations included killing and leaving the bodies of several young men in a forest atop the complex of slums.

“In addition to the rights frequently violated, like entering homes (without a warrant), mistreatment and torture, there is an even more grave situation,” said Pedro Strozenberg from Rio’s Public Defender’s Office.

The military was put in charge of security in the state of Rio de Janeiro earlier this year after muggings and beatings were caught on camera during Carnival celebration.

Soldiers have mostly played supporting roles to police during operations, but on Monday they were clearly in the lead.

The so-called “federal intervention” put thousands of soldiers in the streets and increased operations against drug-trafficking gangs that control many of Rio’s more than 1,000 favelas, or poor neighbourhoods.

Critics argue the intervention has targeted poor people, particularly blacks, and done nothing to address underlying issues like unemployment and income inequality.

“We live in the slum but we are not criminals,” said a resident in Penha who asked not to be identified out of fear for reprisal.